Opening old wounds

The issue of the remission of the remaining prison sentence of Akal Takht Jathedar Bhai Ranjit Singh, who has already spent 13 years in Del...

The issue of the remission of the remaining prison sentence of Akal Takht Jathedar Bhai Ranjit Singh, who has already spent 13 years in Delhi8217;s Tihar Central Jail in connection with the murder of Sant Nirankari Mission chief Gurbachan Singh, revives an old controversy which could disturb peace and social amity in Punjab. Unfortunately, it comes at a time when the border state is looking ahead to a period of development after having come out of a decade of terrorism.

The Sikh-Nirankari conflict had in fact scripted a dark chapter in the State8217;s history in 1978. With the latest controversy, the events seems to have come full circle for it was during Parkash Singh Badal8217;s rule in Punjab under the banner of Shiromani Akali Dal-Jan Sangh combine that 18 persons, including 15 Nihangs and two Nirankaris, were killed in a clash in the holy city of Amritsar on Baisakhi Day, April 13, 1978. Two years later, the Nirankari head, Gurbachan Singh, was killed in Delhi. Now Badal is again in saddle as head of the SAD-BJP alliance which promised to safeguard and promote communal relations in the State.

Sikhs8217; differences with Nirankaris 8212; a new sect 8212; go beyond the infamous clash. Shortly before the gory confrontation, the Dharam Prachar religious propagation wing of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee SGPC had published a 14-page tract to counter Nirankari teachings dubbing their religious book Avtar Bani as 8220;sacrilegious writings8221;.

The SGPC said the Nirankari sect 8220;distorted the interpretation of the Sikh scriptures8221;. The other charges were 8220;profanation of the institutions and symbols of Sikhism, ridiculing the Sikh mode of worship and denigration of the Sikh way of life8221;. Another objection pertains to 8220;the Nirankari chief8217;s self-deification as incarnation of God8221;.

Simultaneously, Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikhism, issued a hukamnama edict directing the Sikhs to socially boycott the controversial sect.

In this surcharged atmosphere, the Nirankari Chief, who was earlier acquitted by the court in the Baisakhi clash case, was gunned down at his residence in North Delhi on April 24, 1980. This brought to an end the efforts at reconciliation between the mainstream Sikhs and Nirankaris, during which the Nirankaris had offered to make amendments in their holy book.

Though Ranjit Singh, then a 27-year-old hailing from the Capital, did not figure in the police FIR, police launched a hunt for him during investigations on the basis of circumstantial evidence. After absconding for four years, he surrendered before the court through efforts of a former chief minister. Ranjit Singh was convicted and awarded life imprisonment by the Sessions Court.

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While behind bars, he was appointed Jathedar of Akal Takht by the SGPC in 1990. Many believe that his initial appointment by the SGPC was to outdo the militants, who wanted to install their own nominee on the pivotal seat. Upon his release on bail a year ago, he was formally installed as Jathedar on December 31, 1996.

A division bench of the Delhi High Court comprising Justice Arun B. Saharya and M.S.A. Siddiqui, cancelled his bail last month and asked him to surrender by October 29. They, however, left it to the discretion of the executive to suspend his pending sentence of less than a year and grant him full freedom in view of his conduct after his release and during prolonged detention.

Chief Minister Badal and SGPC president Gurcharan Singh Tohra last week met President K.R. Narayanan and Prime Minister I.K. Gujral and appealed to them to remit the sentence. Several Sikh organisations worldwide have also submitted similar pleas not only in the interest of the Jathedar but also that of the likely positive effect the gesture would have on the community.

Just when things looked like settling and the mercy petitions being accepted, since the Centre had also received a favourable8217; report from the Punjab Home Department on the Jathedar8217;s conduct, a press statement by the present Nirankari Chief Hardev Singh, who is the son of Gurbachan Singh, has created ripples again.

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While the statement observed that Nirankaris would have no objection if the Jathedar8217;s sentence is waived and hoped that this would improve communal amity, the Jathedar hit back saying the statement was too late and contrary to the past conduct of the sect. He has not only charged the Centre and some unnamed forces with being insincere and discriminatory in the whole episode, but also asserted that the edict on the Nirankari boycott stands and that there would be no compromise with them.

Efforts being made by leaders such as BJP senior vice-president Madan Lal Khurana to mediate have suffered a jolt. A similar exercise initiated during early 8217;80s too had got bogged down.

Chairman of the Guru Gobind Singh Foundation Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia fears that the tension would increase in future thanks to the unwarranted intervention of the Nirankaris to score a point and because the Jathedar hasn8217;t left any room for talks by asking the Nirankaris 8220;to close their shop of lies8221;. While the vital question of remission of the Jathedar8217;s sentence remains to be decided, its outcome would have a significant bearing on the Panthic leadership and the Badal government. Its fallout would also determine ties between the State and Central governments which have been witnessing a rare cordiality during the last six months.